Owning a piece of the same homestead that my ancestors settled makes me a steward of this earth. Like my parents and grandparents, there are days when I am sweaty and exhausted from good honest work in the soil; there are days when I sit in my cushioned chair on the deck admiring the clouds. I am fortunate to have ”one foot in the city” and “one foot on the farm.”

One Foot

Friday, December 6, 2013

Do We Go Consumer Blind at Christmas?

I don’t need as much outdoor wear as I once did when
I enjoyed winter sports, but one item I can’t do without are my Polartec 180
earmuffs.I have a bad right ear and
unless covered, I have pain that will send me inside in minutes.This week the temperature dropped to under 20
degrees and I couldn’t find them.Emergency declared.

Spent two days in the stores looking for similar
product while an internet order came in.Of course I shopped the Penny’s, Targets, and various sports stores and
found many alternate models.After
trying them all on, it became clear that these products are not only inferior,
the design of such is so bad it would be impossible to warm the ear.They were not any cheaper even though they
were not made in the USA.

I asked myself, “doesn’t anyone care if a product
works or fits anymore?” Are we so blind at Christmas that we just buy an item
without any regard for quality of design and manufacture?

I looked around at the racks to see much poor
quality in sweaters, coats, etc.At
another store I saw household items that would top the impractical list as well
as quality of design and the big store that claims to be our community’s friend
couldn’t have produced a product of quality if it tried. I sure hope we have reached the "tipping point" of tolerance for bad merchandise. I went home empty handed and vowed not to buy the stuff. I am tired of sweaters with arms four inches too long and clothing made of a substance that must surely be recycled soda bottles. My oldest garment is far better.

Come to think of it, I saw some really nice things at
the thrift shop this week.Its sad when
used is superior to the products in stores, but at least someone actually had arms the
same length as mine.